Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Takes $982,000 Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,984 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $982,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the second quarter worth approximately $2,297,000. Capital Advisors Inc. OK raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.4% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 149,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $74,064,000 after purchasing an additional 2,074 shares during the period. Trustmark Bank Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the second quarter valued at approximately $290,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 7.7% in the second quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 5,576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,761,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mufg Securities Americas Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 7.8% in the second quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. now owns 3,352 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,660,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.5%

ROK opened at $430.73 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $458.33 and a 200-day moving average of $427.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $332.71 and a 1-year high of $497.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.39% and a return on equity of 39.83%. Rockwell Automation’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.82 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 51.73%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 9th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ROK shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $365.00 to $378.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Evercore set a $485.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $555.00 to $536.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $400.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $360.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $468.19.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, Director Patricia A. Watson sold 1,100 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $431.43, for a total transaction of $474,573.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,754,680.55. This trade represents a 14.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 377 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.51, for a total value of $173,612.27. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,437 shares in the company, valued at $2,043,282.87. This represents a 7.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,285 shares of company stock worth $1,003,904. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Profile

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.